Universal joint.



E. E. NEAL.

UNIVERSAL JOINT.

APPLIQ'ATION FILED MAR. 21, 1910. 1,1 09,006. Patented Se t. 1, 1914.

WITNESSES! 12 INVENTORZ fl. ATTORNEY.

UNITED STATES PATENT cur os.

ELMER E. NEAIL, or BRISTOL, CONNECTIQUT, Assxononro THE NEW DEPARTURE mnnmcwmnc COMPANY, or BRISTOL, connncrxccr, 'A CORPORATION or CON- NECTICU'T.

UNIVERSAL JOINT.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ELMER E. NEAL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Bristol, county of Hartford, State of Con- 'necticut, have invented a. certain new and useful Universal Joint, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertnins to make and use the some, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

My invention relates to universal joints, my object being to provide a structure which has firm driving connection between the cou-' pling members but also permits great freedom of movement of one said member with respect to the other thereof, the parts being readily made and assembled.

To these ends, and ulso to improve gen erally upon devices of the character indi outed, my invention consists in the various matters hereinafter described and claimed.

' In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is e longitudinal sectional elevation; Fig. 2

is a fragmentary plan View, certain parts being broken away; Fig. 3 isn. transverse sectional. elevation; Fig. 4i is aperspective View of a. slide and its cooperating socket plate, a portion of the slide being broken away; and Fig. 5 is a perspective View of one of? the coupling members.

In the structure herein illustrated, the coupling member 1 is shown as having therethroug'h an opening 2 which Is recto-ngulor in cross section. Slidable longitudinnlly' in said. opening are oppositely disposed circular socket plates 3 each of which is rockebie about its own center and has a lid curred socket i in its inner face. The outer faces of the said socket plates engage the inner walls of said coupling member 1, so that said coupling .xnember l and said socket plates rotate together about the longitudincl axis oi said coupling member. A second coupling; member 5, here shown as a head integral with the shaft section X, l1as opposite ends '6 curved transversely and received in the said sockets L of the socket plates, the center of the curve of said headends and oi 'suid sockets being in the longitudinal axis of the coupling. I socket plates ore roclmbie about their own centers to permit the head 5 and its con- Specillcation of Letters Patent. Application filed Karchm, 1910. Serial No. 550,661.

7 those already Thus. the

nected shaft to rock on one line, a'ndfseid head is itself ro'ckable in the socket plates on a line transverse to said first mentioned llne of rocking. Furthermore, this structure permits the said head and its connected shaft to rock in any otl'ier line oblique to or binding, the socket plates rocking about Patented Sept. 1, 1914.

mentioned without cramping their own centers and the head rocking in its sockets to permit this.

gitudinally with respect to catch other.

Preferal'ily, a rib 7 upon each socket plate 3 enters :1 groove 8 in the adjacent end of the head 5, whereby the head and socket plates are held in the desired relationship with respect to each other and accidental displacement between said head andsocket plates is prevented. As illustrated, the bottoms of the said grooves are curved per- :illel to the curvature of the ends of the head, and the outer faces of the ribs are corre spondingly curved. Also, the socket plates,

instead of merely bearing upon the Wallsof the coupling member 1 at the edges of said plates, are preferably supported upon slides 9, whereby each socket plate has a firm bearing in the slide. are rectangular 1 and have substentiully strnig 1t adjacent walls of the coupling member, whereby easy sliding movement but firm The said slides edges which slidubly engage oppo site walls of the coupling member the outer faces of the sides lying against the Also, the 'coupllng members 1 and 5 can slide frcely'ion driving connection exists betweensn-id coupling member and the slides. Each slide hos a. circular opening or socket 10 therethrough which receives the circular project plate 3, the shouldered portion 12 of the socket plate'lying ego-inst the inner face of the slide whereby the socket plates have ample bearing; support in the slides and each ber 1 has at one end a flange for connection with a. shaft section or the like Y, and

ing portion 11 of its cooperating socket 'its otherend is provided \vithacap l4 having an enlarged opening 15 for the shaft section X. p c 4 Thus the present device comprises but few 5 parts and these can be readily made and assembled, but at the same time there is firm driving connection between the parts and great. freedom of movement of said parts with respect to each other, cranipingfand 1o binding being obviated. 3

Having thus described my invention, What I claim as new and desire to secure by Let-v tors-Patent is: 1

1. The combination of a-coupling member having a non-circular opening,' oppositely disposed separate socket plates mounted in said opening, each an axis transverse to the plane of its body and each having a socket, members -o1-- so' mounting said plates received in said opening, said members carrying said plates and having portions in contact along a substantial length xvi-h the sides of said opening intersecting said planes, and a second conpling memberhaving oppositely extending projections received between said socket;

plates and in the sockets thereof, each'of said projections being curved upon an axis transverse to the axis of rocking of said socket plates; substantially as described.

2. The combination of a coupling member having a non=circular opening, oppositely disposed separate socket plates slidably mounted in said opening, each plate being rockable upon an axis transverse to the plane of its body and each having a socket, membersfor'so mounting said plates, said members being: slidably received in said opening, carrying said plates, and having portions in 40 contact along a substantial length with the sides v of said opening intersecting said planes, and a second coupling member havingi oppositely extending. projections received between said socket plates and in the socketsthereof, each of said projections being curved upon-an axis transverse to the axis'of rocking otsaid socket plates; substantially as described.

3;.- -The combination of a coupling mem- 'ber,*a slide in sliding and driving relation.

thereto, a socket plate rockably supported 7 upon said slide to rock upon an axis transverse to the plane of said slide, a second coupling member received in the socket'of plate being rockable upon said socket plate and rockable therein on a line transverse to that of the rocking of said socketplate, and means for supporting said second coupling member in driving relation to said socket plate; substantially as described.

i. The combination of a coupling member, a slide in sliding and driving relation thereto and having a socket, a socket plate rockably "supported in said socket of said slide, a second coupling member received in the socket oi said socket plate and rockable therein in a line transverse to that otthe rocking of said socket plate, and means for supporting said sec'ond coupling member in driving relation to .said socket plate; substantially as described.

5. The combination of a coupling memher, a slide inisliding and driving relation thereto and'having a vsocket, a socket plate rockably'supported in said socket of said slide and having a shouldered portion cooperating with said slide, a second coupling member received in the socket of said socket plate and rockable therein in a line transverse to that of therocking of said socket plate, and means for supporting said second coupling member in driving relation to said socket plate; substantially as described. 6. The combination with a coupling memher having a non-circular opening, of a slide slidable in said opening and having substantially straight edges along which it slides,

whereby said slideand coupling member are in driving relation to each other, said slide having a socket therein, a socket plate having a shouldered portion engaging the face of said slide and also having a projecting portion frockably received in the said socket of said slide, a second coupling member re ceived in the socket of said socket plate and rockable therein in a line transverse to that in which said socket plate rocks, means for preventing accidental displacement between said socket plate and said second coupling member, and'means for supporting said second-coupling member in driving relation to. said socket'plat-e; substantially as described. In testimony whereof, I hereunto afix my signature, in the presence or two Witnesses.

ELMER E. NEAL. Witnesses:

CHAS. It. Annnnson," Josnrn D. Brow 

